NZD/USD rebound from 0.6200 as hawkish RBNZ bets soar, US GDP eyed
- NZD/USD has attempted recovery from 0.6210 as investors expect a string of bumper rate hikes by the RBNZ ahead.
- A fresh cyclone relief package by NZ Hipkins is subjected to fuel inflationary pressures further.
- Fed Bullard is favoring an aggressive monetary policy to squeeze the giant inflation.
The NZD/USD pair has sensed demand after dropping to near 0.6210 in the early Asian session. The Kiwi asset has rebounded as the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) is citing a string of bumper rate hikes to fade fresh fears of further acceleration in the inflationary pressures.
Despite pushing the Official Cash Rate to 4.75% on Wednesday, RBNZ Governor Adrian Orr is favoring more mega rate hikes. The New Zealand inflation has not peaked yet and a fresh cyclone relief package of NZ$300 million ($187.08 million) promised by NZ Prime Minister (PM) Chris Hipkins is subjected to fuel inflationary pressures further.
Economists at Westpac expect a peak of 5.5% in the OCR this year, up from our earlier forecast of 5.25%.” A note from Westpac stated “The RBNZ remains committed to bringing inflation back under control and sees the risks as being to the upside of its already-strong forecasts. As a result, we expect that it will carry through with its plans, at least in the near term.”
A slight recovery in the risk-appetite theme has supported the New Zealand Dollar. S&P500 futures have rebounded and have confidently recovered Wednesday’s losses. The alpha provided on the 10-year US Treasury bonds has slipped to near 3.92%.
Meanwhile, St. Louis Federal Reserve (Fed) President James Bullard has advocated an aggressive interest rate hike in the March monetary policy meeting to sharpen its tools in the battle against persistent inflation. Fed policymaker believes that the central bank has a chance to tame inflation significantly in 2023 without pushing the United States into a recession. Also, Fed Bullard has come forward with a terminal rate projection of 5.4%.
On Thursday, investors will see a power-pack action after the release of the annualized US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (Q4) data. The economic data is seen unchanged at 2.9%. An upbeat US GDP data could infuse fresh blood into the US Dollar Index (DXY) ahead.